Full spectrum lights, often sold as "grow lights," provide an effective way to grow plants indoors. Grow lights allow you to adapt indoor lighting conditions to any plant's requirements, and can even be used to grow large vegetable-producing plants like tomatoes and peppers indoors. Learning how to grow houseplants with grow lights is not much more difficult than growing them in natural light. Some of the key considerations are presented below.

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Steps

1

Choose the appropriate type of grow lights. There are 3 types of bulbs that work well as grow lights: metal halide, high pressure sodium (HPS), and fluorescent. Each type of light fixture has its own advantages and drawbacks.

Metal halide bulbs are compact and efficient, producing a very intense light from a small bulb. These bulbs are rich in blue wavelengths of light, which helps encourage leafy growth in plants.

High pressure sodium bulbs, on the other hand, are rich in reddish-orange light. This makes them great for germinating seedlings and encouraging flowering and fruiting. However, HPS lamps are not suited for general purpose plant lighting, as they do not encourage stem growth adequately.

Fluorescent lamps are the most economical and widely available choice for plant lighting. You must buy lamps labeled as "full spectrum" to use them as grow lights. T5 bulbs and high-wattage CFLs are the best choices for growing flowering or fruiting plants or any plant that requires intense, direct light.

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2

Position the grow lights above your plants. Most nurseries and home improvement stores that sell grow lights will also stock several kinds of stands or mounting chains on which you can mount the lights. The height of the light above the plants is important, and as a general rule should be higher as the light gets more intense.

If you are attempting to start seedlings with your grow lights, or if you are using relatively low-output fluorescent lamps, position the grow lights only a few inches above the houseplants.

If using a high-intensity light source like metal halide bulbs, you should keep the bulb about a yard (1 m) away from the plants. Thin, spindly growth is a sign that the lamp is too high above the plants, while thick, curled leaves can indicate a lamp that is too close.

3

Cycle the grow lights on and off appropriately. You cannot maximize plant growth by simply leaving the grow lights on 24 hours each day. In fact, this is a good way to stress and kill your houseplants. Instead, aim to leave grow lights on continuously for about 14 to 16 hours each day, which simulates spring sunlight.

A good way to ensure that the grow lights are cycled on and off each day is to wire them to a timer. You can purchase a light timer at most home improvement stores.

You can experiment with different lighting durations to see which schedule your plants will respond to best. In general, houseplants should receive at least 12 hours of sunlight per day to encourage growth.

4

Adjust your grow light setup as needed. Of course, there are no hard and fast rules on grow light location, intensity, and duration, and so you may need to adjust your own setup to accommodate the needs of your houseplants. Requirements may differ based on your ambient light conditions, temperature, houseplant varieties, and whether you intend to encourage flowering.

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